This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Mahmoud Ashraf Mahmoud Mohamed, a 22-year-old founder who goes by Komy A. He’s a final-year university student at the Asia Pacific University of Technology and Innovation in Kuala Lumpur. The following has been edited for length and clarity. Business Insider has verified his employment and academic history.
While pursuing my bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity in Malaysia, I began working in 2023 for a UK company that developed software solutions.
When OpenAI dropped their AI, I could bring it into any software that I write. I started automating some parts of my job with AI. At some point, I had a full AI system with agents that was automating for four clients at a time.
There was so much potential in this. I was excited about it and decided to leave my job and do that full time with an AI agent-focused startup, and I started Genta AI in November 2024.
We scaled the team quite fast and hired a few senior people with over 10 years of experience in software development.
Building a startup in school can get lonely
I’ve always worked while in school, but starting a business, I was surprised that there’s a lot to do. After starting Genta, I barely have time to go to school. I usually have a handful of meetings a day.
Even though everyone around me has asked me to slow down and focus on finishing my degree, I can’t. I always have Genta as my priority.
I’m worried about my last year of school. We’re scaling fast, and I’ll get busier. I even sometimes think about dropping out, but I don’t want to do that.
Sometimes, it’s a bit sad not to live the full school experience. You give up a lot on social life, building friendships in university, and fun things you should be doing at this age.
I rarely attend campus events, student clubs, activities, or social gatherings. Over time, that created a distance between me and the typical university experience.
It gets lonely. Everyone around you is living a completely different life. That’s the hardest part about it.
A day in my life as a student founder
I start my day around 8 a.m., checking emails, Slack, and work updates. Then I head to campus and attend classes, mostly for attendance. I usually work during lectures.
I try to avoid scheduling calls during class hours, but things often overlap. Sometimes I have to leave mid-class or skip entirely.
After school, I move to a coworking space or a café and continue working and taking calls until around 7 to 8 p.m.
When I get home, I start working on our US-based accounts until 1 to 2 a.m. because of the time zone difference. I usually use the time on weekends to focus on Genta’s internal growth.
Sometimes, on Sunday, I try to disconnect for a few hours by taking bike rides outside the city, swimming, or catching up with friends and family — anything that isn’t work or university-related.
Living this way for almost a year hasn’t been easy, but I’ve gotten used to it, and I’ve grown to love the rhythm.
Age shouldn’t stop you from being a founder
I don’t buy that age is a barrier to starting a company. But it can be a problem, especially when working with bigger clients.
There are a lot of clients that I could have done so much for, but the main reason we didn’t proceed is because of how young I was and how new the company was.
Tech, especially AI, is such a new technology. It needs people who can move, learn, and adapt fast, which you usually see among the younger generation.
Many clients actually try to take advantage of me. They say, “He’s young, he doesn’t have much,” and then they try to get more work for free, or they try to cut the price.
That is disrespectful to do purely based on age. I try to prove myself and gain that respect with work, focusing on getting the ROI. Then they don’t just respect you, but they want to work with you.
One of the trickiest things for me is being a manager. It’s a new experience, and I always try to be as nice and as chill as possible with my team. I hate micromanaging and having to be bossy, but I expect a lot from my 16-member team, which is spread across countries.
The more I experience, the more I realize that there’s still much I need to work on.
College students should never wait until something happens or until they reach a certain level to start. Do now, learn later. You’ll only figure it out once you start. You should not know everything.
Do you have a story to share about being a young AI founder? Contact this reporter at [email protected] or Signal at @cmlee.81.
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